The World Oyster Society

Irish Breeding Ponds
Photo from The World Oyster Society Web Site

Could oysters be the catalyst for world unity? Members of The World Oyster Society (WOS) think so. It may sound audacious, but the vision of (WOS) is to "bring together the oyster people of the World for the benefit of Mankind." A global society devoted to oysters? Well, that makes me as happy as a puppy with two tails. 

At its core, WOS is open to anyone who loves, protects and celebrates oysters. The president and founder of WOS, Dr. Katsuyoshi Mori, stresses the vital connection between humans and the Earth. His office directed me to one of the steering committee members of the North American Chapter of The World Oyster Society, Dr. Aswani Volety, to find out more. What I found was a scientist, deeply involved in his research. Stay with me as we diverge from the WOS a bit. I always like to pick the brains of oyster nerds. Dr. Volety is a professor of marine science at Florida Gulf Coast University and has been studying the ecological importance of oysters for the past 25 years. Here's an excerpt of my interview. (I edited the professor a bit to accommodate our online attention spans.)

Dr. Aswani Volety
Director, North and South American Chapter
The World Oyster Society

Where do you see the oyster population in 10 years?

I am an optimist. Although recent reports and studies have shown that oyster populations have declined worldwide in the past several decades, there is a greater understanding of the role oysters play … I am hopeful that we will have at least a 10% increase in oyster coverage / production in the coming decade.

Why are you interested in oysters? 

Oysters, while economically important, their ecological importance is far greater. They improve water quality … provide mitigation against boat wakes, waves from storms/ hurricanes, remove nitrogen from water column and provide food, shelter and habitat for over 30 species.

From your perspective, what is the most exciting thing happening in the field of oyster conservation research?

It is very hard to be succinct about the accomplishments of numerous colleagues … We have a better understanding about the genetic aspects that regulate oyster health and disease resistance. We also have a better understanding of the role of environmental stressors on oysters. This enables us to identify locations that are conducive for growth of oyster reefs as well as identifying better areas for oyster aquaculture.

Are there unique challenges oysters face in North America that they do not face in other parts of the world?

I am not sure if I would categorize issues and challenges in the USA as unique, but certainly a bit nuanced. In many countries, shellfish aquaculture is accepted and encouraged in coastal areas. In the United States there is competition for recreational use of water and aquaculture, including objections against visual nature of oyster bags / rafts etc. 

Do you eat oysters?  If so, what's your favorite way to eat them?  Do you have a favorite oyster?

Errr..can I take the fifth J? Kidding aside, I don’t eat oysters regularly – not because of anything that is in them, but knowing so much about their anatomy, when eating oysters I was focusing on what part I was eating rather than enjoying oysters per se. 

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Back to the World Oyster Society … and its website. Tucked away on the site are the coolest pictures from oyster farms from around the world depicting various methods of growing oysters. For me, this is the biggest benefit of the WOS - sharing our collective oyster culture. I picked out a few of my favorites: 
(The pictures and captions are taken directly from the WOS website.)

AUSTRALIA

Intertidal longline in Coffin Bay, South Australia (Photograph by Southern Cross Marine Culture)

Racks at Little Swanport on Tasmania's east coast (Photograph by Oyster Tasmania).

IRELAND

Aerial view of 21 Ostrea edulis breeding ponds, each containing 1m litres.

FRANCE

In the lagoons of the Mediterranean sea where there is no tide, oysters and mussels are cultivated in suspension on "tables" built up from the sea bed. The photo shows one of this table in a small lagoon near Montpellier. (Photograph by IFREMER)

CHINA

TAIWAN

Oyster culture at Changhua (photo by Changhua Fiehery Association, Taiwan)

JAPAN

Hardening rack in shallow tidal areas. (Photograph by Ishinomaki-bay Fisheries Cooperation)

Oysters hung from long-line.　(Photograph by Miyagi Prefecture Fisheries Research and Development Center)

TUNISIA

Juveniles fixed with cement.　(Photograph by Dr. Chalghaf Mohamed)

Oyster spat collectors(Dr. Chalghaf Mohamed).

VIETNAM

Oyster Culture cages at Can Gio, Vietnam. Steel framed cages with fishing net are used to grow oysters in;
the cages are suspended on floating rafts. (Photograph by Howard Feilding)

Oyster culture in Central Vietnam is typically like in this photograph, suspended cages grown subtidally.
(Photograph by Mr.Howard Feilding)

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Want to join me and be a card carrying member of the World Oyster Society? Simply complete the membership form. As of now, "no qualification or requirement exists for becoming a member of this society" (which is how I got in), but they do have the right to accept or reject your application. There's no cost to join. 

BIG NEWS: For the first time, the International Oyster Symposium is coming to the United States in 2015, a decade after the World Oyster Society began in Tokyo. In previous years, the Symposium was an oyster geek fest primarily composed of scientists, researchers and aquaculture operators. The US event hopes to be more broad based, says Kahren Dowcett, the event producer and a WOS steering committee member with Dr. Volety. Stay tuned to Oyster Stew for more info about the 2015 event in the coming weeks. In the meantime, feel free to reach out to Kahren at kahren@livingartsinstitue.org. She can answer questions you have about the Society as well as the Symposium.